WHEREAS, transgender people come from all walks of life and make up a part of a diverse community, representing all racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds; and

WHEREAS, transgender individuals around the world and in the United States are exposed to widespread social stigma, discrimination, harassment, and physical and sexual abuse; and

WHEREAS, Transgender Day of Remembrance began in 1999 as a vigil to honor the memory of Rita Hester, a transgender woman who was killed in 1998, and to raise awareness of hate crimes against transgender people; and

WHEREAS, transgender deaths by violence have increased during each of the last three years with 2017 recording the most ever transgender deaths at 29, and 2018 with 22 transgender deaths to date; and

WHEREAS, Hawai’i has the largest population of people per capita that identify as transgender, roughly 8,450 individuals or 0.8% of the population; and

WHEREAS, the “Hawai’i Sexual and Gender Minority Health Report 2018: A Focus on Transgender Youth” shows that 1,260 youth, 3.3 percent of those surveyed, identify as transgender or gender nonconforming, and that transgender youth are eight times more likely to face housing instability and four times more likely to have been sexually assaulted than cisgender youth; and

WHEREAS, 40 percent of transgender youth in Hawai’i engage in high-risk behaviors and 50 percent have attempted suicide at least once in the past year; and

WHEREAS, the health and well-being of all transgender persons require greater attention from national and state policymakers;

THEREFORE I, DAVID Y. IGE, Governor, and I, DOUGLAS S. CHIN, Lieutenant Governor of the State of Hawaii, do hereby proclaim November 20, 2018 as “TRANSGENDER DAY OF REMEMBERANCE” in Hawai’i and ask the people of the Aloha State to remember and honor those whose lives were lost to hate crimes, anti-transgender fear, discrimination and violence, and reaffirm our commitment to fight transphobia, and promote understanding and acceptance of transgender individuals.

Done at the State Capitol, in Executive Chambers, Honolulu, State of Hawai’i, this twenty-third day of October 2018.